A new nine-month term for the US Supreme Court begins on Monday with big cases that will shape many aspects of American life. The court’s nine justices are back after last year’s blockbuster term, which included rulings that protected a widely used abortion pill or granted former President Donald Trump partial immunity from prosecution.
The nine justices of the court are back after last year’s blockbuster term, which brought protection to a widely used abortion pill, or granted former President Donald Trump partial immunity from prosecution.
The coming months may see contentious legal battles over the looming presidential elections, which could be highly consequential in what should be a closely-fought contest. With its six-three conservative majority still intact, its rulings may continue to fuel further skepticism among the American public, whose approval for its work is now at 43%, according to Gallup, a near-record low. And with a new year ahead, here’s a look at some of the major cases on its docket:.
While the US Supreme Court has been and will continue to be in full swing starting a new term, several high-profile cases are set to take shape in legal landscapes on such sizzling hot-button issues as gun control and transgender healthcare. Two of the most closely watched cases involve so-called “ghost guns” and access to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals, each carrying significant social and legal implications.
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Transgender care in Tennessee
The case likely to be the biggest splash of the term is US v Skrmetti, in which the justices will consider the Biden administration’s challenge to a ban on gender care for minors that was backed by Republicans.
The Tennessee ban, which became effective in July 2023, forbids specific treatments for minor patients with gender dysphoria, such as the prescription of any puberty blocker or hormone if the treatment is designed to “enable a minor to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex” or treat “purported discomfort or distress from a discordance between the minor’s sex and asserted identity”.
Ghost Guns Case
One of the cases being heard is the issue on “ghost guns,” unlawful, traceless firearms, unconnected to any serial number, constructed from parts, kits, or parts printed 3D. These guns are extremely popular today because they skirt around the usual gun control laws, like background checks and serial number requirements, hence not traceable to law enforcement.
It is a question of whether the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives legally has the right to control these homemade guns within the boundaries of the existing gun control legislation. The Biden administration supports the opinion that the ghost guns should be just like other fully manufactured firearms, which are subject to the same regulations; outlawed weapons have increased crimes by a large number in the community.
Opponents, including gun rights groups, argue that the regulation of ghost guns violates Second Amendment protections that individuals have to carry or build their own guns. The Supreme Court decision may either advance or disabuse the right of the government to regulate this growing threat in gun violence.
Case Transgender Healthcare
Another blockbuster case concerns the constitutionality of state laws banning transgender minors’ access to gender-affirming care. Earlier this year, several states passed legislation restricting or outlawing, at least until a child reaches a certain age, puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and other treatments for transgender minors, which has been deemed an experimental or dangerous practice by the states.
Families of transgender children, and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, have challenged these laws, arguing that they infringe on constitutional guarantees of equal protection and medical privacy. They argue that gender-affirming care is recognized by the world’s major medical associations as a necessary treatment for trans individuals and that this denial results in extreme and disastrous mental health outcomes for trans youth.
This case will have a very significant implication for the Supreme Court since the bans at the state level could either be ratified or overturned, consequently setting a precedent across the whole nation on the issues of rights to transgender health.
Broader Implications
These are part of a broader docket that resonates with the balance between individual rights and government regulation which courts have a say in determining. The ghost gun case might just shift the paradigm for how courts interpret gun control laws in the age of the digital, while the transgender care case raises deep questions over issues of access to healthcare, personal autonomy, and civil rights over the lives of the LGBTQ+ community.
As the country is set to see these cases play out, the Supreme Court’s decisions are expected to have far-reaching consequences for the public policy, legal requirements and daily lives of million
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